Cotton combing and cleaning machine



W. G. TURNER AND J. E. MORRISON.

COTTON COMBING AND CLEANING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED DEC 14. I92].

2 1,438,879, Patented Dec. 12, 1922.

a William GTurner John EMorrison Patented Dec. 12, 1922.

rant

WILLIAMG. TURNER "AND JOHN E. MORRISON, OF M MPHIS, TENNESSEE.

COTTON GOMEING AND CLEANING MACHINE.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, WILLIAM G. TURNER and JOHN' E. Moimison, citizens of the United States, residing at Memphis, in the county of Shelby and State of Tennessee, have invented certain new and useful Improven'ients in Cotton Combing and Cleaning Machines, of which the following is a specification.

Our said invention relates to a machine for combing and cleaning cotton. As is well known, a considerable percentage of cotton is of low grade because it isidirtyoriginally or becomes so in handling. The only method heretofore devised for cleaning this cotton is to break and cleanthe cotton at the mills, or, if the grade hasbeen raised by breaking and cleaning with mill machinery elsewhere than at the cotton mill, reginning of the cotton, has always heretoforebeen necessary in order to render the same salable for the amount commensurate with the advanced grade acquiredby cleaning, butfas the reginning injures the fibre, much of the benefit derived from cleaning is thus forfeited by the necessity of reginning. The low grade compress crop, consisting of cotton gathered up around compresses, is not sold direct to cotton mills, but is customarily sent to cleaning and reginning establishments and after treatment sold as reginsi Beginning, however, causes deterioration of the cotton for the reason that the gin. saws cut and otherwise damage thestaple. Reginned cotton can berecognized assuch by a cotton classer, and is sold for 'a-much lower price than other cotton, of the same grade or classification. In the use of our machine the staple is not damaged because it is not reginned, but the grade of the cotton is raised to a very decided extent. Cotton classers have been found uniformly unable to distinguish any difference between cotton treated by our machine and cotton from an ordinary original ginned bale. In other words, while reginned cotton suffers so much in the process that any cotton classer can detect it, cotton treated by our machine is equal in quality to ordinary cotton which has suffered no special treatment. The principal object of our invention, then, is to provide a machine which shall clean dirty cotton effectually, and other subordinate or an cillary objects will appear hereinafter.

Referring to the accompanying drawings which are made a part hereof and on which cati n g movement Application nee December 14, 1921. Serial No. 522,349.

similar reference characters indicate similar parts,

Figure l is aplan of our machine with the upperportion of the casing remove Figure 2 a central section thereof, Figure 3 an end View of a modified form of a part thereof,

Figure at an enlarged view of an element, and

Figure 5 a modification of another detail. In the drawings 10 indicates a supporting and enclosing framework for the machine having means of access at desirable points and providing three partially separated compartments A, B and G. The compartment A provides a hopper at 11 through which dirty cotton is fed into the machine.

Adjacent the hopper isa spiked drum 12 having at opposite sides groups of guideor coaxing rolls 13.

These rolls are carried by shafts havmg at one end pinions 14E meshing with common driving gear 15. The gear 15 and the spiked drum are driven by pulley 16,011 the shaft 17 which also carries tl e drum and the gear.

Adjacentthe gear a roller 18 is lined to the shaft and bears against a cam'19 fast to a side member of the machine frame. Between the pulley 16 and the opposite side of the machine-frame is a spring 20. As the shaft it and connected parts revolve it will be e dent that the cam 19 will impart a reci to the shaft and the drum and gear carried thereby. The face of gear 15 is made wide so that the teeth of the gear and the pinions will not become disengaged by reason of such movement. If preferred opposed cams may be substituted for the cam and spring shown or other known mechanical expedients may be utilized to produce thesarne effect.

Beneath the drum 12 is a shaft'21 carrying a driving pulley 21 and a number of spaced disks 22 having sharp points bearing a considerable similarity to the teeth of gin saws. These sharp points act to comb the fiber and are not set nor do they have sharp edges. being sharp only at the points. The disks are spaced along the shaft in any conventional or preferred manner. While we have shown the circular disks with points machine thatthe projections onthisshaft be iori'ned as disks, since they mightbe formed by nails driven into some sort ofsheet material attached to a wooden drum or the like substantially in the manner or card clothing, it being essential only that there be sharp points to form, withthe spikes on roller 12,

a coarse comb for the cotton.

. disks 22 and are here shown as engaging the lowermost one oi the rollers 13 at one side thereof. The spacers are slightly resilient so. that they can be forced down somewhat by compacted masses of cotton if any such should be'carried around by the drum 1.2. At some distance from the place where the points engage the cotton there is provided 2.

stationary brush 26 or if preferred a rotary brush traveling at a different rate tronii that of the pointed disks may be substituted for the brush 26.

Thecotton is removed from the pointed disks by rotating brush 27 driven by pulley 27and is carried down to the bottom of the compartment which the i above described parts'are located. At the lower forward corner of the compartment is a transverse opening at '28 through which the cotton passes after leaving the rotarv brush, being impelled partly by a blast of air from a tube 29 extending across the chamber below the opening 28 and having alongitudinal slot 29 positioned to force air throughthe loose cotton and lengthwise of the compartment in part also the cotton. is carried along by reason of forming a sort of loose and only slightly coherent lap passing through the machine. The air blast :lfor tube 29 isturnished by an ordinary blower 30.-

In the compartment l3 between the ends of casing 10 there are mounted a pair of conveyors. The upper COIN/8370331 is formed of wire mesh and is trained over two rollers 32 and 33, the former driven by pulley 32, the first being adjacent the point'of entry of the cotton into this compartment and the second being in the adjoining compartment C. This conveyor carries the cotton along in' loose formation and due in part to the shaking received in its motion and in part to the air passing down through the cotton a portion of the dirt falls throu h the upper conveyor and on the lower one 34 and other impurities arethrown down at the front end oi the conveyor. The conveyor 3 4: is made of cloth and its purposeis to carry off the dirt falling from the upper conveyor and dump the same intothe bottom of compartmerit C. V

At the upper end of said compartment 1 ,aessre is a wire drum 35 driven bya pulley 35 which picks up the cotton from the conveyor 31 and the cotton then passes over drum and underneath a small woodencompressing roller 36 geared to the drum after which it ,passesdown an inclined chute. At this point it is delivered to a stationary or traveling receptacle and is ready to be made up into bales or otherwise utilized.

Figure 8 shows a modified form of invention in which the cotton is introduced somewhat in the form ofa lap by means of a conveyor 38 from which it passes be tween a a0. Cl he separators 22, the spiked. drum 12 and other parts are substantially in the modification previously described.

Figure 5 shows a modified form of a feed device in which the coaxing. or guiding rollers 33 are supersededv by a pair of approximately semi-circular guiding plates i1 which cover thesurttace of the spiked drum 12 at one side and have a space between them in which the separators 22 operate to remove the cotton from the drum.

In the operation of my device the cotton isled in a loose fluffy mass to the spiked drum 12 which carries it .down into contact 'with the resilient fiber separators 23. By

these it' is retarded somewhat while being brought into reach of the pointed disks 22. These pointed disks gradually pull or stretch out the fiber, the points 22 moving faster than. the'spikes on the roll 12; This forms the first step of the combing'and cleaning process. In the second step the fibre is carried against the relatively stationary brush '26, and this materially assists the combing and cleaning action by brushing the fibre and causing it to be further pulled apart or stretched out. The third step takes place after it is removed from the pointed disk by the rotary brush 2'7. and is carried out in the main by the air blast as it passes through compartment B. This air blast loosens the cotton and partly, blows and partly shakes out the dirt already loosened by the combing and. brushing operations. The dirt-and trash fall through conveyor 31 onto the cloth conveyor 34% or oil the end thereof, and are removed, the cotton mean time passing over the conveyor 31; and be ing taken up by the wire drum 35 and the roller 36.] From the drum 35 it passes over:

g which is indicatedin the appended claims.

' Having thus fully. described our said in fluted roller 39 and, a plain roller vention, what We claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

l. A cotton cleaning machine comprising combing and cleaning means, a perforated conveyor receiving the cotton from said combing and cleaning means, and means to force a blast of air through said cotton between said combing and cleaning means and said conveyor, substantially as set forth.

2. A machine for cleaning cotton comprising combing means, a conveyor receiving the cotton from said combing means, means to produce an air blast through the cotton intermediate the combing means and the conveyor, an elevated drum at the end of the conveyor to pick up the cotton therefrom, and means below the end of the conveyor to receive impurities separated from the cotton, substantially as set forth.

3. A machine for cleaning cotton comprising a first compartment, combing means in said compartment, a second compartment, a perforated conveyor in said compartment, means at the junction of said compartments to force air through the cotton and into the second compartment whereby air may pass down through the conveyor, and a second imperforate conveyor under the first to re ceive impurities from the cotton, substantially as set forth.

t. A machine for cleaning cotton comprising a first compartment, feeding and combing means in said compartment, a second compartment, a perforated conveyor therein to receive the cotton, a third compartment, means therein to lift the cotton off the conveyor and guide it out of the machine and means also in said compartment to receive impuritiesseparated from the cotton, substantially as set forth.

In a machine for cleaning cotton, a hopper. a spiked roller beneath the hopper, means to guide the cotton against the roller and hold it in such position, and a second roller having pointed teeth revolving at higher speed than the first to comb the cotton to remove it from the first roller, substantially as set forth.

6. In a machine for cleaning cotton, a hopper, a spiked roller beneath the hopper, means to guide the cotton against the roller and hold it in such position, and a second roller having sharp-pointed projections and revolving at higher speed than the first to comb the cotton and remove it from the first roller, the point on said second roller engaging the cotton on the first intermittently at varying points along the length of the first roller, substantially as set forth.

7. In a machine for cleaning cotton, a hopper, a spiked roller beneath the hopper,

means to guide the cotton against the roller and hold it in such position, a roller having sharp pointed projections revolving at higher speed than the first to comb and clean the cotton and remove it from the first roller, and means for giving said first roller a movement of translation in the direction of its length, substantially as set forth.

8. In a. machine for cleaning cotton, a hopper, a spiked roller to receive the cotton, coaxing rolls arranged about a side of the spiked roller, a gear fast to the spiked roller, and pinions fast to the coaxing rolls and meshing with said gear, substantially as set forth.

9. In a machine for cleaning cotton, a hopper, a spiked roller to receive the cotton, coaxing rolls arranged about a side of the spiked roller, a gear fastto thespiked roller, pinions fast to the coaxing rolls and meshing with said gear, and means for moving the spiked roller axially, substantially as set forth.

10. In a machine for cleaning cotton, a hopper, a toothed roller, means in connection therewith for feeding cotton about the roller, a second roller having sharp-pointed projections co'acting with the first: to comb the cotton and a stationary brush engaging the second roller at a distance from the first and coacting therewith to comb the cotton 'a second time, substantially as set forth.

11. In a cotton cleaning machine, a porcupine roller, means adapted to feed cotton thereto, a second roller having axially spaced sets of teeth coacting with the first roller to comb and clean the cotton, separators between axially spaced sets of said teeth to retard the cotton, and means to remove the cotton from the teeth of said second. roller, substantially as set forth.

12. In a cotton cleaning machine, a toothed roller, means adapted to feed cotton thereto, a second. roller having axially spaced disks with projecting points coacting with the first roller to comb the cotton, resilient separators between said disks to retard the cotton and extending closely adjacent to the first roller, and means to remove the cotton from the points of said second roller, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof, we have hereunto set our hands and seals at Memphis, Tennessee, this 6th day of December, A. D. nineteen hundred and twenty-one.

WILLIAM G. TURNER. [1 8.]

JOHN E. MORRISON. [L.S.]

Witnesses:

JOHN JV. FARLEY,

'I. E. BABE. 

